Instrumental aggression: Aggression as a means to some goal other than causing pain

Learned through classical conditioning, operant conditioning and social learning

Learning by direct experience: By doing something and as a result getting something you want, this behaviour is likely to get rewarded

Learning by indirect reinforcement: When a role model is seen as behaving in a certain way, and then imitating the behaviour

The main methods of social learning theory

Attention: Learning through observation, attending to a models behaviour

Retention: To model the behaviour, needs to be remembered and placed into long term memory

Production: The observer must possess the physical capabilities of the modelled behaviour

Motivation: receive positive reinforcement for the modelled behaviour

Bandura: Believed that aggressive reinforcement by family members was the most prominent source of behaviour modelling.

Media violence and aggression: TV has been examined as a powerful source of imitative learning. Several variable influence aggressive behaviour in the media, these are:

· If the observed violence is thought to be real or considered fictional

· If viewers identify with the aggressor in some way, more aggressive if they do not identify with the aggressive model

· Observing unsuccessful aggression, in which the aggressor is punished tends to inhibit aggressive behaviour in the observer

Social learning theory of aggression – Bandura (1963)

Suggests that aggression is learnt from the environment through reinforcement and the process of modelling. Modelling involves learning through the observation of other people (models), which may lead to imitation if the behaviour to be imitated leads to desirable consequences. Bandura distinguished between the learning and the performing of the aggressive behaviour

He found that aggression may be learnt from models through observation, but the likelihood of it being imitated depends on the perceived consequences of the models reinforcement. Id its punishment, less likely to be repeated.